Alwin was a little surprised when he had gotten notice that the Albatross would probably be taking off sooner rather than later.  His past experience with such vessels was that they usually take a little more time in hunting down cargo and acquiring passengers.  Einar and Horace work fast seem, it seems, he mused to himself.

At least he had gotten a really good club sandwich, although he didn't have a chance to learn anything interesting or useful about St. Brandan in the process.

Making his way back to the ship, he tracks down Horace and wait for a moment when the man isn't too busy with passengers or other concerns.  "So what did I miss?" he asks.

Florence came back to the ship with Marlo in tow, and introduced him to the crew. "This is Marlo, who you may have recognized as a Crosser. He's looking for passage to St. Brendan. I've already explained the basics and he is used to traveling that way."

Introductions done, she let Marlo speak for himself and the others negotiate for the cost of the stateroom. Instead, she turned to Dominique. She seemed about to say something but instead closed her mouth. While it seemed probable that she had recognized the former singer, she didn't seem awe-struck or anything. Maybe more surprised than anything else.

She glanced at Einar when he mentioned salvage and shook her head. "They know - or at least knew - where most of it is." She shrugged. "It just doesn't make any sense economically speaking for them to hunt those things. Much better to let other take the risks and pay the costs and buy whatever they find than do it themselves. Plus, the salvagers are not people who would do well in a structured environment like the navy so hiring people to do that would be a nightmare. It's much better that way."

   Dominiq listened while Captain Karvonen outlined the three directions the ship might head down. It sounded to her as if the discussion hadn't yet been settled, and with her own possession of a Ship Share, it might take a while longer. At some point, however, it would have to be settled. But that was a conversation for another time.

   She thought she'd heard something down the passageway before the door to the bridge opened, and her head turned in time to see the arrival of a redheaded woman as well as hear the skritch-skritch of what sounded like claws ... Dominiq took a half-step back from the chair she'd been leaning on, then took another full step and bumped into one of the Bridge consoles before she stopped. Her right hand dove down and reached for something on her belt as her eyes narrowed at the arrival of the alien onto the Bridge. But her dark fingers curled around nothing, the blade and sheath having been surrendered earlier - a fact that left the former entertainer feeling naked for the first time in a long while - to deal with on her way to the Bridge. She moved her back against one of the consoles and brought both arms up and crossed them over her chest while she glared at the pseudo-dinosaur.

   It was a moment before the former entertainer collected herself and glanced to the redhead, who had been about to say something, then closed her mouth and turned her attention back to Karvonen. Dark eyes watched the interplay between both of them, but Dominiq seemed to be content to be quiet and watch. She could tell that the conversational tone of the room had changed, and there seemed to be an energy in the air. She'd watched crowds in the past to gauge their mood in order to figure out which tracks would catch their attention first. But here, the energy was different ... and she wasn't sure that it was a good thing.

  So she kept a watchful eye and said nothing while tossing the occasional frown in the direction of where the Crosser stood. If the Captain wanted to ask more, or if he was receptive to any more of her questions, he would likely let her know. For the moment, she'd let things play out.

The Crosser gives a nod of its toothy, reptilian head when introduced, the traditional greeting in their culture.  Nearby,  Sammy Sastrelli seems pleased.  He has his camera out.


"Your associate Florence is interesting," the alien says through its translator.  "Most Humans have no wish to learn any of our language.  I have heard just a few.  It is said that machine translators cannot emulate the emotion carried in words.  Learning another's language is always valuable.  I do not speak any of the Human languages.  It is sad, but true.  Perhaps I am lazy.  I need nothing special from you for the trip.  I can eat Human food, and I enjoy it.  It is rare that two different planet-descendants can enjoy each others food.  I think that gives Humans and Crossers a special bond.  Do you think so?  Also, your temperature and gravity is acceptable to me.  The air is, you might know, of a low pressure for me but do not worry.  I have a supplemental oxygen generator with me, a good thing, or I would not have been able to breath in all my travels on your ships.  I hope to have an interesting journey, and then only one more journey and I am home.  Thank you all.  You may call me Marlo.  Ah, one more thing.  Florence inquired about economics.  It is something I like to discuss, we can all talk during the journey, I shall be happy."

Alwin realizes that with the hold full of construction equipment and miscellaneous supplies, there is no room for any significant cargo.  But there are open staterooms, and as he knows from his merchant ship experience, ship owners generally consider empty staterooms a waste.  Across the Hundred Worlds, more money is made in the moving of people than anything else. The ship has 12 staterooms, twice what the crew needs even if no one shares.   And there is still a waiting of list of passengers that would pay for a journey to St. Brendan.

Marlo seems interested in the talk of salvage.  The Crosser nods again, and says simply, "oh, yes.  That we can talk about, too."

In reply to Alwin Brandle (msg # 55):

"Not much, interviewing potential crew is all. Nique is seeking working passage."

Reggie seemed always  pop up here and there. He " Popped" up when the Crosser  came on board. He was quick to place a hand in from of Mr. Sastrelli's camera.

 In a low tone of voice. " Mr. Sastrelli, we  spoke of this matter. If someone on board is to be recorded, interviewed, you must have their permission. We value the privacy of our passengers. Thank you for your cooperation."
This message was last edited by the player at 14:29, Wed 22 Jan 2020.

Einar gave Alwin a bit of a wave when he returned, and seemed to look upon Reggies intervention with an approving sort of expression. He pointedly ignored Florence on the matter of Salvage and it's vagaries.

The Crosser he gave his more full attention to, and "got up" from where he was leaning on a console to approach and make everything seem more official. "She is at that" Einar replied with that sort of salty undertone that would only come through to native speakers.

"Welcome aboard Marlo. I'm Captain Einar Korvonen, and this is the XO, Mister Horace Wymp" he gestured to the man. "I had not heard of your people, and so I did a little research when I learned you were comin' aboard. I found it all very interesting, and yeah, I think we'll have a lot to talk about. Salvage included I'm sure." he gave a welcoming gesture down the hall. "I'll show you to your room, once Reggi's satisfied. He's our Security Officer."

"My family are also sort of Nomads. It's not quite the same I'm sure, but we've nearly always lived on ships. There were a few stints on stations, mostly ship breaking work." he mentioned as the newcomers continued to come aboard.

Horace greeted the Crosser Marlo when he was introduced, holding out his hand in greeting.

The journalist nods with a sheepish smile and puts the camera away.

"It is understandable to be curious of me," Marlo says to him.  "Yes, you can record me.  Just not now.  I must set myself in place and look at my quarters.  Are there no other passengers aboard?"

"Who is this person Mister Gain? What does he want? He looks like a paparazzi. Get him out of here."

A Crosser? Alwin mused to himself.  This trip just got more interesting.

He will make himself useful, helping with any last-minute preparations before the Albatross was scheduled to take off.  He made a mental note to himself to study up on Crossers, both their diet and any medical peculiarities that might have to be dealt with.

"Just cook for us Mister Brandle, they eat what we eat."

In reply to Horace Wymp (msg # 64):

 Reggie attempted to explain. "Mr. Wymp, this gentleman is interested in booking passage. He is some sort of journalist, and wants to cover Mr.Marlos journey with us. I said he would have to clear it with you."

"I don't think so. Take the memory card from the camera and kick him off. We don't need his kind giving us bad publicity."

Einar looked mildly surprised and amused by the interaction. He crossed his arms and just watched, obviously interested in just how this would pan out.

"If he wants, I'll pay for the memory card so he suffers no loss."

  " As you wish, Mr.Wymp" said Reggie, never taking his eyes off of the journalist.

 " I regret that I must ask you for your memory card. Mr.Sastrelli. I shall then escort you off the ship." Said Reg in a neutral tone of voice.

   Dominiq watched the unfolding drama, noting that the Captain seemed to be playing along and watching the interaction between the others with an amused look. She watched as the Captain moved in the direction of the Alien and introduced himself, and the rest of his crew before he'd gestured down the hall. Brown nostrils flared slightly at the man's gesture and his offer to escort it to the room it would occupy for the duration of the trip.

   When the ship's X.O. and Security man went back and forth on the subject of the photographer, she noted that the man had put his camera away, but she wasn't sure that the man hadn't taken any pictures onboard the vessel. She wasn't sure about shipboard law worked vs. planetside, but if either of the ship's officers got too forceful with Sastrelli, it wouldn't go too well for the ship.

   "Mister Wymp ... Reggie," she mentioned the Exec's name warmly, along with the Security Chief's. Her heels ticked softly on the deck as she moved closer, but kept her arms folded over her chest and stopped a handful of meters away from the two men and their target. Her voice was cordial and carried a hint of friendliness as she continued. "Lord knows, I'm no more a fan of Mr Sistrelli than either of you, but please do be careful; some reporters are a bit ... sensitive ... when it comes to themselves, or their things."

   "The man has to make a living, after all. So you'll need to find out if he's taken any pictures here on the ship. We could simply ask to see the camera and figure out if he has taken any pictures. If he has, he loses the disk and you can send him on his way. If he hasn't, he still goes away, but he can keep his equipment."

   She looked towards Sistrelli and her dark eyes narrowed as she regarded the man. After her last words, her mauve lips curled on one side in the beginnings of a smirk, but the humour rose no higher than that. "Just my 2 Credits, of course."

"Good point, I leave it to you Mister Gain to take care of as you see fit."

Florence stayed to the side, not really caring much about the journalist / paparazzo. She didn't think it was the right way to handle things at all, especially with Marlo stating he was fine with it, but it wasn't like her opinion was wanted, much less mattered, anyway. And if the man was feeling vindicative… Well, it soon wouldn't be her problem now, would it?

Instead, she turned to Marlo and answered his question. "None at this moment no. That I know of anyway. Do you want me to show you to the staterooms? You'll have your pick." Not that it mattered all that much, but… "And I can show you around if you want?" She cocked her head to the side, after a second. "Will you need help for your luggage?" After a second, she turned to Dominique. "What about you Ms. Shabazz?"
This message was last edited by the player at 16:52, Fri 24 Jan 2020.

"Now that he knows who our newest crew member is Miss Pearce, thanks to you, he has to go. We don't need the distraction of a paparazzi with his camera and recorder. She was looking for time FROM the limelight, not be thrust into it."

Florence looked at Horace for a couple of seconds, then turned her head away without bothering to say anything. Since Dominique was not disguised, any reporter, especially with paparazzo tendencies, would know perfectly well who she was.

But if he wanted to blame her for that debacle... What did it change?
This message was last edited by the player at 17:30, Fri 24 Jan 2020.

Sammy makes the connections in his head, but you can see from his expressions the directions its going:  unfamiliar ship,  strangely hostile to journalists, hardly any passengers... and doesn't seem to want any.

That adds up to things... he doesn't want to mess around with.

Spacers call them Ghost Ships, but they aren't crewed by undead.  Just Humans.  They aren't common, but everyone has seen one or two.  Most of the time, the Ghost Ships just... travel.  They don't take on cargo or passengers, they don't have any known government connection, they pay for things with accounts that are quickly erased, or with cash. They leave no records.  And they break no laws, at least, they have never been known to, so they aren't officially investigated.

This is the polar opposite of most commercial ships.  Commercial ships make a lot of money from passengers and freight, and a good reputation helps.  Ghost Ships avoid getting any reputation.

There are numerous theories- they are smuggling, they are moving extremely rich people who want to travel in secret, they are shifting wealth around for corporations that want to evade taxes, they are engaged in espionage.  Or maybe it's a mix.  Most spacers would agree; probably a mix.  Only the serious Conspiracy Theorists think it's all some unified scheme.  As spacers see it, whatever the Ghost Ships are up to, they have must have good reasons to keep things secret.  So people just don't bother with them.

Maybe if Sammy was a crack investigative journalist... but he is just an avid paparazzi who follows "interesting" travellers around.  He takes the hint:  this is one of those ships.  And departs.

He gives a parting nod to Marlo.  "Hope to see you around, we're both trying to get to the same place, after all."  The alien nods back, and then adds, after Sammy leaves:  "It will be quite a comfortable trip, my own private yacht.  I am like a very wealthy Human now."

** ** ** *** **

The journey to St Brendan is 7 days including maneuvering between planets and warp points.
 During the journey, characters will have a chance to do 2 or 3 things in addition to their other duties.  Florence and Dominique have fewer "ship tasks" with no other passengers aboard, so they have 3. Others get 2.

Talk to Marlo about one of:
Marlo's "take" on humanity from recent travels
Trading with Crossers
Crosser culture

Read articles on St. Brendan
Read articles on Deseret
Read articles about LDMLT01
Read articles about local shipping and trade
Read "Free Trader Weekly" for random tips about the business.  They usually have a write up focusing on a specific commodity, a place, and a ship.

Use a skill to tinker with a system on the ship.  (Not advisable unless you have at least a 3 in the applicable skill.)

Search through entertainment net listings, see if you can find out more about the paparazzi chased off the ship.

Get a lot of rest and relaxation in.

*** *** *** ***

And the ship makes preparations to leave.

They plot a course.  During the journey the ship will make two "course correction" stops, first at a brown dwarf and second at a bright, young, active star known for its variable output, which goes up and down visibly every few hours.  HD 88824, aka LW Vela is the brightest star in the night sky from both Deseret and St Brendan.  With its variable, high energy, young and active nature ships are not advised to travel close to it, but the outer system, among the globs of rock and ice that are the planets here, is safe.

The actual HD 88824.  St Brendan would be orbiting a minor star a little to the left.

During the journey to St. Brendan, Florence spent a while learning everything she could about trade and shipping by reading on her laptop: since no one was now interested in teaching her anything, she had to take care of that herself. Not that she minded much since she was perfectly able to learn by herself - or was surprised by it truth be told - but it didn't make things any easier.

Most of her time however - or at least as much as she could get away with - she spent talking with Marlo. She had considered talking to him about their cultures, but she already knew a bit about that… and she'd have the time later on to delve more into that. In pretty much the same way, she was curious to know what he thought about humans - an external point of view was always interesting after all - but once again, it wasn't the most important she could do at the moment. Plus, what really mattered to her at the moment was humans opinion about their own systems and governments.
Knowing what aliens like the Crossers thought wouldn't be much help at all. So instead, she focused on how, what and why Crossers traded with others…particularly how Marlo's Home Ship did - in comparison with others or not: not only it would teach her quite a bit about Crossers themselves, it could also allow her to learn a thing or two about trade. Though of course, she allowed Marlo to ask her any question he wanted: those were conversations, not interrogations after all!

What was truly notable though, was that those conversation were not done using Marlo's translator: Florence seemed able to undestand him just fine, and somehow, used her laptop to "speak" for her, with a degree of sophistication not found in any kind of standard translator. She even used the opportunity to learn his Home Ship's language if he allowed it.

The rest of her time she spent either in her room or wandering the ship, taking care of whatever random tasks she had or simply stretching her legs. She didn't seem to want to avoid anyone, but didn't seem particularly intent on initiating a conversation with anyone but Marlo.

Horace offered to teach Florence what he could about trade and brokering. Not holding anything said between the two in any negative way. He will talk with Marlo at times when she didn't want to occupy his time, not wanting to interrupt their friendship.

He also spent time with Nique, getting her acclimated to the crew and helping her adjust to space life.